Naples, Spalletti in Salerno without Kvaratskhelia: “Giving your best is a historic moment”

NAPLES – Without the affected Kvaratskhelia and without the impetus of the fans, who are starting to serve the two-month break in away games in the Salerno derby, decided by the Minister of the Interior after the clashes on the motorway with the Roma ultras. However, Luciano Spalletti is convinced that Napoli will immediately resume its journey at the Arechi stadium. “In the Coppa Italia we weren’t able to express ourselves at the top of our possibilities, against Cremonese, but the elimination penalized us beyond our demerits. It will help us to understand that we must always give 100 per 100, we are facing a historic moment”, the Tuscan coach relaunched the challenge, also launching an appeal to the Azzurri supporters. “Now we need to put only the good of the city before everything else and the rest doesn’t count, on or off the field”.

The absence of Kvaratskhelia (not even called up) will have to be metabolized quickly. “He’s doing better, but he’s still on the meds.” His place will almost certainly be taken by Elmas, who however is also in the running with Zielinski for a place in midfield. “The Macedonian deserves is doing well and he deserves to play, I can say that he will be in the match for sure”. However, Spalletti trusts above all in the magical moment of Victor Osimhen. “He continues to grow, he has improved a lot in terms of character and has a great future ahead of him. He never backs down and is not afraid to fight”. This is why the Nigerian striker will be essential in the fiery climate of the derby. “A hot stadium awaits us and it will be a very difficult match. I respect Nicola as a colleague and a man and I am glad he had another chance, even if not having him as an opponent would have been an advantage for us. We will need the best Napoli to come out on top from Arechi”.

Spalletti wants to close the first leg on a high note, in which the Azzurri had an amazing performance. “But it’s only a partial achievement. It means that we’re first, of course, but there’s still a long way to go. The title of winter champions doesn’t lighten anything, it will increase our desire to keep this position. My future? We’ll discuss it with the club in the right time. Now we don’t care about anything. We think about getting to the end of this season, putting all the interests of the city first”.